The Political Economy of Football V2

The first weekend of the Premier League season was also the beginning of an end. A new campaign that kicked off with Liverpool’s 4-2 win against Bournemouth on Friday will be the last to see gambling sponsors on the front of playing shirts, closing the book on over two decades of financial support. More than half of the Premier League’s 20 clubs have a gambling firm as their primary sponsor and they soon must look elsewhere for solutions to a commercial shortfall that collectively runs to £100million ($135m). There will still be the chance to display betting firms on the sleeves of kits, advertising boards and on training wear, but it is forecast that the value of some sponsorship deals could be halved in the next 12 months. Eleven clubs — Aston Villa, Everton, West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Nottingham Forest, Fulham, Crystal Palace, Brentford, Bournemouth, Burnley and Sunderland — are all having one last dance with a betting platform this season. It has typically be...

A ban on bookies' logos on the fronts of players' shirts is looming in 2026.   Meanwhile, half the Premier League clubs have bookies as their front shirt sponsors for the new season.  Brentford, Sunderland and West Ham have announced new deals this summer.   The voluntary ban was collectively agreed by the Premier League in April 2023. Clubs with betting firms as front shirt sponsors will face a 40 per cent fall in front shirt revenue when they have to ditch the front shirt logos as betting firms generally pay above the marker rate.   Deals can be worth as much as £23m a season. Betting firms will still be able to have logos on players' shorts or sleeves.   They also spemd heavily on perimeter advertising. The Government has been talking about 'sin taxes' on gambling to raise revenue.  Indeed, the horse racing industry is planning a day's strike in protest, not that many people have noticed. You rarely see a poor bookie or betting firm....

Scottish fans are increased concerned about gambling adverts and sponsorships, according to a survey conducted by the Scottish Football Supporters' Association:  https://scottishfsa.org/gambling-survey-results/ 78 per cent thought that there was too much gambling sponsorship in Scottish football and fans were also critical of the steps taken by clubs to warn of the downside risks associated with betting.

The Government is considering banning betting firms from front of shirt sponsorships.  The Spanish Government banned gambling companies sponsoring teams in La Liga which will affect eight teams in the top league. 10 out of 20 teams in the Premier League are sponsored by a betting company and 17 of the 24 Championship teams.   Last season Premier League teams sponsored by betting companies signed deals worth a combined £69m.

A House of Lords committee report says that betting firms should be stopped from advertising on football shirts:  https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/53261364 The report has no legislative force, but adds to a growing clamour for restrictions on advertising by gambling firms.  It recognises that an immediate ban would hit smaller clubs hard. The English Football League (EFL) says the gambling sector contributes £40m a season to the league and its clubs and with the financial problems of the coronavirus pandemic, this "significant" contribution is "as important now as it has ever been". The report came from the Select Committee on the Social and Economic Impact of Gambling and can be found here:  https://www.parliament.uk/business/committees/committees-a-z/lords-select/gambling-committee/news-parliament-2019/lords-gambling-report-published/

In a wide ranging interview sports minister Nigel Adams has criticised football's dependency on gambling, expressing serious concerns about clubs relying on money from gambling companies: Promises to address issue of betting within football He confirmed sponsorship and advertising deals with such firms will form part of the government’s review of the Gambling Act, which will begin within weeks. He commented, 'I appreciate finances aren’t brilliant at a lot of the clubs but they need to be mindful of the impact that these sort of deals have on vulnerable people, who could potentially have an issue with gambling.' EFL clubs in particular are reliant on money from gambling. Mr Adams is the Conservative MP for Selby and Ainsty, having been first elected in 2010. He has held the sports minister role since July last year. His main sport is cricket, having played competitive cricket in the York Senior League. He is secretary of the Lords and Commons Cricket Club.

Steve Sutherland discusses the betting controversy enveloping the FA: Betting deal He notes: 'Three years ago, the Football Association indicated that it wanted to distance itself from the gambling industry by ending its £4million-a-year sponsorship from Ladbrokes, who are owned by GVC Holdings. It’s little wonder then that The FA are receiving heavy criticism over the sale of FA Cup rights to BET365 via its deal with sports rights agency IMG, a deal which is due to run until 2024.' He says, 'Ideally I’d like to see gambling sponsorships go the way of tobacco and alcohol, both of which were major sponsors of sport'but admits this is not realistic because of the financial effect it would have on clubs and suggests an alternative approach.

Ladbrokes will not be renewing the sponsorship of the SPFL after the end of this season: Sponsorship ends Like other gambling companies, they are pulling back from an involvement in professional sport after the role of betting companies attracted criticism. Parent company GVC holdings called for an end to all advertising of sports betting in the UK, as well as a ban on football shirt sponsorship by bookies. As an established company, challenger companies would have more to lose from such a ban. The SPFL's chief executive is confident of obtaining a new sponsor but they went for two years without one before the Ladbrokes deal.

Football has become increasingly reliant on income from betting companies. They account for some forty per cent of perimeter advertising and half of shirt sponsorships, amounting to some £50m a year in total. The growth of this relationship has in part been driven by the growth of online gambling. Betting on matches is also very important in Asia where Premier League games are seen as free of any form of fixing. However, there are risks in this relationship. The gambling industry has come under criticism for failing to do enough to deal with the problem of addiction. It would claim that it has taken measures and, in any case, the vast majority of those who bet just enjoy the occasional flutter. However, the Labour Party has pledged to end betting advertising in football which would have considerable financial implications, although they might allow a transition period (and the legislation would take time to pass). There is an interesting review of these issues here: The odd re...